Energy Equivalent of Atomic Mass Unit :- Explanation and Derivation

Energy Equivalent of Atomic Mass Unit

According to Einstein's mass-energy relation, the energy equivalent to mass m is given by:

E = mc²

where c is the velocity of light.

Let mass m = 1 a.m.u. = 1.660965 × 10^-27 kg

c = 3 × 10⁸ m/s

Hence energy equivalent to 1 a.m.u. is given by

1 a.m.u. = 1.660965 × 10^-27 × (3 × 10⁸)²

1 a.m.u. = 1.4925 × 10^-10 Joules

or

1 a.m.u. = 1.4925 × 10^-10 J = 931.5 MeV

1 MeV = 1.602 × 10^-13 J

Energy equivalent to mass of electron, proton, and neutron are:

• m_e = 0.511 MeV
• m_p = 938.279 MeV
• m_n = 939.573 MeV